A research note by Philippe Frocrain and Pierre-Noël Giraud.

One thing is clear: the interweaving of industry and services has become so strong that it makes the traditional distinction between industrial and tertiary jobs increasingly irrelevant. On the other hand, at a time of globalization, it is very instructive to distinguish between jobs exposed to international competition that contribute to the production of goods and services that are exchangeable across borders and those that are protected from it.

This research note provides an overview of employment in France from this perspective. What are, in practice, exposed and protected jobs? Do they differ in terms of qualifications, salaries and changes in productivity? How are they distributed throughout the territory? What are the interdependencies between these two categories of jobs? How to reconcile the imperatives of international competitiveness and social justice? These are the questions this research note attempts to highlight, using graphic and cartographic elements.

It highlights a series of original results, presented in a simple and pedagogical way. Furthermore, appendices provide demanding readers with many methodological clarifications. This note is thus aimed at a wider public (students and researchers, journalists, corporate executives and public decision-makers…) wishing to benefit from new insights into the evolution of the French economy.

The note is available as a free download on the La Fabrique website.